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Inspiration: I’ve seen the idea of mashed cauliflower floating around for a long time now, but for some reason I never thought to try it myself until last week when I was looking for a vegetable side dish. I was skeptical, but I was so curious that I had to give it a try.

What we Loved: What didn’t we love about this? I was completely shocked with how much this cauliflower tasted like mashed potatoes. The texture of my mashed cauliflower was a bit lighter and less dense than potatoes (almost a little bit soupier?), but with a pat of butter on top and some salt and pepper, the flavor is really outstanding! It really compares well with the flavor of mashed potatoes. And cauliflower is so ridiculously healthy for you. Considering the fact that we’ve had this side dish three times already, I think it gets a thumbs up from both of us (and especially from me, since mashed potatoes with plenty of butter and salt has always been a favorite treat of mine). And if you’re interested, check out this awesome study regarding vegetables and fats that B recently shared with me.

Helpful Hints: Try this dish out a few times to get it just the way that you like it. The first time that I tried this, I only used a potato masher to mash the cauliflower, and the texture was completely wrong for me. It was almost too much like the texture of rice. I was really disappointed, and almost decided that I really didn’t like mashed cauliflower. But I tried it again, this time throwing the cauliflower into the food processor, and I ended up with awesome results. Next time, I think I’m going to try Greek yogurt instead of milk for a bit of a thicker texture, which I would prefer. So if the texture doesn’t come out how you like it the first time, keep trying different methods! My recipe below is pretty vague for this reason. You can vary what you add to the cauliflower to adjust the creaminess, and you can process for varying lengths of times to get a lumpy vs. smooth texture.

Mashed Cauliflower

Source: Taken from bits and pieces of information seen around the internet and from my knowledge of making mashed potatoes

1 head of cauliflower, removed from the stem and cut into pieces
Kosher salt and black pepper
Skim milk (or you could use any other kind of milk, cream, sour cream, or yogurt – which I think might work best for a thicker result)
Add-ins, if desired, such as cheeses, cream cheese, or chives

1. Add the cauliflower to a pot, and then add enough water to just barely cover the cauliflower.

2. Bring to a boil, and then cook until the cauliflower is softened, approximately 7-8 minutes.

3. Add the cauliflower to a food processor. Add just a bit of milk (the cauliflower will provide some water, so you don’t need much) or sour cream/yogurt, and season with salt and pepper. Puree until the cauliflower is the texture that you prefer.

4. If you are using any add-ins, add them to the food processor, and pulse a few times to incorporate.

5. Serve the mashed cauliflower plain, with butter and S&P, or with gravy.